1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a method for controlling an information processing apparatus, and an image forming system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, electronization of information has become more encouraged, and image processing apparatuses such as printers or facsimiles used for outputting electronic information and those such as scanners used for electronizing documents have come to play essential roles accordingly. Such image processing apparatuses are often configured as multifunction peripherals (MFPs) that can be used as a printer, a facsimile, a scanner, and a copier, by being provided with an image capturing function, an image forming function, and a communication function, for example.
Among these image processing apparatuses, those used for outputting electronized information generally receive a print job generated by an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer (PC), and execute an image forming output based on the print job. In a method disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2001-318777, for example, when an image forming apparatus having received a print job fails and becomes incapable of executing an output, a print job is forwarded to another image forming apparatus and the image forming apparatus is caused to execute the output, in place of the failed image forming apparatus.
In the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2001-318777, because the print job needs to be forwarded, only an image forming apparatus connected to a network, such as a local area network (LAN), can be a substitute for the failed image forming apparatus. Therefore, an image forming apparatus connected only to the PC via a Universal Serial Bus (USB), for example, in other words, a local image forming apparatus cannot be a substitute for the failed image forming apparatus.
In a method conventionally practiced, a PC to which a local image forming apparatus is connected functions as a server, and another PC uses the server to cause the local image forming apparatus to execute an image forming output. However, in the conventional method, the setting operation needs to be performed for both the PC to which the local image forming apparatus is connected and the PC from which the print job is transmitted. Therefore, users who are unfamiliar with PC operations might experience difficulties.
Moreover, since only allowed to transmit a print job is a PC subjected to the setting operation, such a system does not deal with substitute printing in the case of a failure in an image forming apparatus.
Therefore, there is a need for an information processing apparatus capable of enabling an image forming apparatus locally connected thereto to execute substitute printing.